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Tuesday, August 11, 2009

You may remember when I posted about finding this Lexington faux bamboo desk at an antique shop in the NC mountains.

The desk was in absolutely perfect condition, and while the cream color was pretty, I thought another color could really make it stand out. In fact, I almost overlooked it in the antique shop because of its nondescript color. The fabulous style is really lost in this beigey color, and I knew that would be an easy fix!
You can see that it was priced at $70 (!!) but we were able to negotiate it down to $65. This is half of what a particleboard desk would cost at Target (and a fraction of what this desk would cost retail), and this desk is real wood and a heck of alot cuter than anything I've seen lately!
The big task was deciding on a color. I was initially thinking black, but the more I thought about, the more I thought a glossy red would look fabulous and really show off the desk's chippendale detailing.
I took Nick Olsen's advice and bought a few cans of red enamel Rustoleum. Sounds crazy, but he says it is a dead-ringer for Fine Paints of Europe's Tulip Red, and I believe it. It is the perfect cherry red- not too orange, not too blue, just perfect.
Time to paint! I did sand the desk a bit first, but I don't really think that was necessary.

It took about 3 coats to get it completely even. This picture shows the shadows from the trees on the top of the desk.

And, the (almost) finished product. I love how it turned out. I think the red really makes the lines of the desk stand out! (By the way- use a dropcloth. I skipped that step, and the red paint made the back yard look like an unfortunate crime scene- and it doesn't disappear after the grass is mowed once).

Here it is in its final resting place, in a little corner of the den. The room is mainly blue and white, so I love the pop of red with this desk.

Here is a better angle of the finished product (ignore the cords that have since been hidden).

And with the pictures hung and a little "styling"... I updated this brass lamp with a black shade, and I love how it turned out. I think you can definitely use brass without it looking outdated!

My mom has a bamboo desk just like this! She was going to sell it at a yard sale until she found out I was pining for it. Hers is yellow but I'm going to paint it white and put it in our soon to be slate gray (or maybe charcoal?) guest room/office. Such a great find! :)

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